Elliot Kessler

From the first recorded story, we’ve been dreaming of larger-than-life heroes who conquer evil and help the helpless. From Gilgamesh to Achilles. From Thor to Odin. From Robin Hood to Sir Gawain. We have a plethora of heroes. But why? Why do we have these larger-than-life heroes? Why do we create these gods and goddesses to look up to? Why are we fascinated by them, and what makes them essential?

Everyone has at least one role model. A lot of people look up to celebrities or their parents. Maybe they look up to friends or extended family. We all have someone to look up to. It is natural to look up to someone. We look for an example of how to live and act. We look to them to find out what is right and wrong. We celebrate them and praise them, telling everyone about the ones we look up to. For some people, their role models become their gods, and that’s not an exaggeration. Many people practically worship the people they look up to, whether they be celebrities or the main character from their favorite TV show. That’s where the phrase “Never meet your heroes” comes from because the people who say this look to their role models as perfect gods who are never wrong.

Heroes in fiction are there to represent the best of humanity. They inspire and show us that we can become good, telling us that not all heroes have to be corrupt. Not all heroes fall, and we don’t have to, either. We can stand because they stand. We can do good because they do good. We can fight for honor, morality, and the people because they also fight for that.

But heroes aren’t perfect, either. They aren’t evil, but they have weaknesses. Superman is vulnerable to kryptonite. Achilles has a weak point in his heel. Thor is prideful. Gilgamesh is afraid of death. These are weaknesses that their enemies continuously exploit. But our heroes rise. They overcome their weaknesses and fight back against evil. They show us that our weaknesses don’t have to paralyze us. They can be overcome and defeated. We can fight back against the evil that plagues us because they did. We can be strong because they are. The challenges we face are terrifying. They’re like a wall, tall, imposing, and smooth. It looks impossible to climb over, but we need only look to our heroes who have overcome the walls in front of us and follow their example. If they can do it, so can we. They show us we are not alone.

Too often, evil tries to bring the heroes down to their level. Like the Joker in “The Dark Knight,” evil longs to corrupt our heroes, showing that they are not who we think they are. They want to see them fall so that hope is destroyed. After all, if the best of humanity is corrupt, what chance do we have at rising above our demons? How can we overcome our weaknesses if our heroes succumb to them?

Recently, we’ve had a lot of bad, corrupt heroes that show the worst of humanity. They’re petty, they’re entitled, and they’re selfish. They can’t see past their own nose. They are blind to the problems of others, focusing only on themselves and shoving off anyone who decides to bother them.

Fortunately, we authors can change that. We can bring back the heroes of old. The heroes we know and love so well can never be wholly defeated because good heroes never die. They are immortal. No matter what society says about them or how horrible people try to make them look, they will always remain with us. They are the ones we look up to; if we let others take that from us, we’re no stronger than the evil we fight against. We must maintain our heroes and keep them from being destroyed. We must protect them from those who conspire to bring them down to their level. After all, if our heroes can defeat evil, then so can we.

Thanks for reading! Have a fantastic day.